Kerry visit seeks to reset U.S. relations with Sri Lanka

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By Lesley Wroughton COLOMBO (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Sri Lanka on Saturday to offer support for newly elected President Maithripala Sirisena after years of tensions with the former government of President Mahinda Rajapaksa over human rights. It is the first time in a decade that a U.S. secretary of state has visited Sri Lanka. In recent years Sri Lanka had tilted heavily toward China as Rajapaksa fell out with the West over human rights and allegations of war crimes at the end of its drawn-out conflict with Tamil separatists, which ended in 2009. Kerry has been credited in Sri Lanka for his role in pressing for peaceful and inclusive elections, and for calling Rajapaksa on the eve of voting to urge him to respect the outcome.




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